Cardinals Pick Up Pierzynski, Who Gives Them a Lift

Jake Peavy was traded on Saturday from Boston to San Francisco for two Class AAA pitchers.CreditTom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

By The Associated Press

July 26, 2014

Matt Adams drove in four runs, A. J. Pierzynski had three hits in his Cardinals debut, and visiting St. Louis beat the Chicago Cubs, 6-3, to stop a four-game skid.

Shelby Miller returned to the Cardinals’ rotation and pitched into the sixth inning. Adams hit a two-run double in the first and a two-run triple in the seventh, a four-run inning capped by Pierzynski’s single for a run.

Randy Choate got the last out of the sixth in relief of Miller. Trevor Rosenthal worked around two hits in a scoreless ninth, earning his 31st save in 35 tries.

Before the game, the Cardinals signed Pierzynski, a veteran catcher, and designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment to make room on the roster.

The Cardinals have been looking for a steady presence behind the plate since Yadier Molina, an All-Star, went down with a torn ligament in his right thumb July 9.

ROCKIES 8, PIRATES 1 Tyler Matzek allowed three hits over seven innings as host Colorado beat Pittsburgh for its third straight win. Ike Davis denied Colorado its first shutout at Coors Field this season with a one-out homer in the ninth.

The game began with the Rockies handing out 15,000 jerseys with Troy Tulowitzki’s name misspelled in a giveaway gaffe. The second T was missing, so the backs read “Tulowizki.” The team said in a statement that it was aware of the misspelling but decided to hand out the jerseys because fans had come to the game specifically for the promotion.

REDS 1, NATIONALS 0 Johnny Cueto struck out nine in seven innings, and Brayan Pena singled through a drawn-in infield for the only run, leading Cincinnati to a victory over visiting Washington that ended a seven-game losing streak. Cincinnati ended its longest losing streak in five years by getting several good defensive plays and another dominant performance by Cueto. MARINERS 4, ORIOLES 3 Chris Young allowed two hits in seven shutout innings, and host Seattle broke a four-game losing streak by holding off Baltimore. Dustin Ackley doubled twice and scored two runs for the Mariners.

Over his past seven starts, the right-handed Young is 4-2 with a 2.12 earned run average and 43 strikeouts. Young has won nine games for the first time since 2007 with San Diego.

ROYALS 7, INDIANS 5 Billy Butler homered for the second straight game, and Kansas City overcame a five-run deficit to defeat visiting Cleveland for its fifth straight win. A day after his pinch-hit, two-run homer in the eighth inning beat Cleveland, Butler connected for a tiebreaking shot in the fifth. BRAVES 5, PADRES 3 Freddie Freeman had three hits and a run batted in, Julio Teheran earned his 10th win, and host Atlanta beat San Diego. Tommy La Stella also had three hits and Chris Johnson drove in two runs as the Braves moved to one and a half games behind Washington, the National League East leader.

RAYS 3, RED SOX 0 Tampa Bay beat visiting Boston for its ninth consecutive victory. The stretch is the second-longest in team history, three short of a 12-game winning streak in June 2004. Boston has lost five straight. Before the game, the Red Sox traded the right-hander Jake Peavy and cash to San Francisco for the minor league pitchers Edwin Escobar and Heath Hembree.

ANGELS 4, TIGERS 0 Efren Navarro hit his first major league homer, off Justin Verlander, as Los Angeles blanked visiting Detroit. Matt Shoemaker threw just 78 pitches through seven innings, allowing three hits and no walks and striking out five.

ATHLETICS 5, RANGERS 1 Sonny Gray won his sixth straight decision, helped when visiting Oakland hit four home runs in a six-batter span to beat Texas.

John Jaso hit a two-run drive with two outs in the sixth inning. Yoenis Cespedes followed with his 17th home run. Josh Donaldson led off the seventh with another home run, and Josh Reddick connected two batters later.

DIAMONDBACKS 10, PHILLIES 6 Martin Prado doubled, homered and drove in five runs, including a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the 10th inning, to lift visiting Arizona to a victory over Philadelphia.

WHITE SOX 7, TWINS 0 Chris Sale tied a season high with 12 strikeouts in eight dominant innings, and Chicago beat host Minnesota for its third straight win over the Twins. Sale allowed five hits, all singles, and became the first White Sox starter to win 10 of his first 11 decisions in a season since Mark Buehrle in 2005.

MARLINS 7, ASTROS 3 Giancarlo Stanton’s double in the second inning broke a 2-2 tie to give Miami a victory at Houston. Christian Yelich had two hits, including an R.B.I. single as part of the four-run inning. Houston lost its fourth straight and fell a season-high 20 games below .500 (42-62).

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page SP4 of the New York edition with the headline: Cardinals Pick Up Pierzynski, Who Gives Them a Lift. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe